It’s a good pose, but it’s important for the nails to be positioned so that each nail sits slightly lower than the next one. When the nails are in line with one another, there’s a tendency to compare the nails. — Palylyk

This is great when a nail tech wants to get a picture of her own nails. It’s nice, too, because it can be used with or without a prop. When you take your own nails, use a macro lens. If you’re taking a picture of someone else’s nails, you’ll be able to take the picture from a little further away and then crop the picture as needed. If done well, this pose with the hand around an interesting prop looks good blown up as a poster. — Hoel

The Claw

The Claw allows you can see the art well on all five nails, but the hand looks uncomfortable and unnatural. — Palylyk

The background of a hand is distracting, but I can see the reason someone poses a hand into a claw, especially to include nail art on the thumb. That would probably be the only reason I would do a picture this way. — Hoel

Lots of Fingers

I don’t ever position hands this way. The art overwhelms the eye. — Palylyk

I think this has its place if you are trying to match nail art from one nail to the next, two halves of a heart, for example. For any other reason, I would switch to a more flattering pose. The “lots of fingers” pose makes fingers look wide. — Hoel

One Hand on Top of the Other

This is a better pose than “lots of fingers,” but the vertical angle makes fingers look short, and the art is still overwhelming. The viewer doesn’t know where to look when all the nails are laid out like this; there’s no focal point. — Palylyk

Placing one hand on top of the other makes the nails and fingers look wide. It doesn’t flatter the nails or the fingers of the client. — Hoel

Hands Staggered

A staggered pose allows you to see the nails well, and fingers look longer and more natural. Diagonal nail placement always looks better. — Palylyk

Staggered hands is certainly my favorite pose. The fingers don’t look as wide and you can angle them properly to catch the light well. Be careful not to overlap the hands too much. I suggest bringing the top hand up a bit so you can see all the nails without hiding the bottom hand. — Hoel

One Hand

This pose is esthetically pleasing, especially if the hands are in a natural diagonal position. Plus, it makes fingers look longer and thin. — Palylyk

One hand poses can certainly look excellent. If you are going to shoot one hand, keep it angled. This will give you a better shot than taking the picture sideways or straight up and down. — Hoel